Kurdistan’s Weekly Brief November 22

Turkey

The jailed Co-chair of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) Selahattin Demirtash sent a message through his lawyers. He said: “May God rest the soul of the miners who lost their lives in the disaster in Siirt’s Shirvan district. I wish condolences to their families and our people and hope those workers who have not been reached yet are rescued unharmed. Now is the time to build a bridge of solidarity and love and share pain from Soma and Ermenek to Shirvan. We will definitively triumph in our struggle to work and live humanely.” On November 22, the HDP spokesperson Ayhan Bilgen announced the HDP’s return to Parliament. He said, “We will neither surrender here to you as you want nor be your figureheads in the parliament.” HDP boycotted the parliament sessions due to arrests against their Co-chairs and deputies.

Following the arrests of ten deputies of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP), the Turkish police continued to arrest Kurdish Co-mayors, politicians, and activists. Names of Kurdish officials who are arrested and detained:

Veteran Kurdish politician Ahmed Turk 74, the Co- mayor of Mardin city. Ahmed Turk is a well-known Kurdish figure around the world. He is the only Kurdish politician in Turkey to meet with the President of the United States in 2009. Turk was detained in a house raid by Turkish police.

Many of the detained Kurdish officials are waiting for trials while some are accused of participating in protests for “press freedom” and others are accused of links to Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK). The Turkish government appointed trustees after removing the Co-mayors, while the ruling Party of Justice and Development is attempting to change the Co-chair system in the Kurdish provinces.

Turkish authorities shut down the only Kurdish school in Van city which opened last year. The school had three classes with fifty students. On media, the Turkish authorities raided the columnist’s house Shaban Iba in Edrmit Iba is working for the Pro-Kurdish news agency Ozgur Gundem.

Syria

After issuing a warrant against the Co-leader of the Democratic Union Party (PYD) Salih Muslim, he replied with a tweet saying, “No one should take Turkish arrest warrant against him seriously.”

After launching the operation of “Wrath of Euphrates” to liberate Raqqa, Islamic State’s (ISIS) capital, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) liberated the strategic hilltop town Tal Saman in north Raqqa. The SDF are only 26km far from the center of the Raqqa city. The SDF fighters are getting closer to liberate al-Sokeri village.

Despite the withdrawal of People Defense Units (YPG) under Turkey demands Turkish-backed Islamic militias attacked west of Manbij and clashed with the U.S. back Manbij Military Council (MMC) who are part of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). The SDF liberated Manbij from ISIS in August of 2016, and self-management administration is set up by the locals. On November 22, six civilians were killed by Turkish warplanes targeting Sebel-Weran village west Manbij. In Al-Bab and due to Turkish operation there, locals accused the Turkish military of ethnic cleansing and destroying villages.

Iraq

Massoud Barzani, the President of the Kurdistan region, called the political parties to meet and reactivate the parliament by selecting new speaker then to appoint a new cabinet and a president since his second presidency term has ended on August 19, 2015. The statement comes after disagreements and lack of reaching an agreement among the Kurdish parties over the Presidency and the law to elect a President.

Protests broke out in Sulaymaniyah by teachers and other civil service employees demanding the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) to pay their salaries in full. The KRG blames the drop in oil prices in the region for causing the financial crises, while many activists and non-government organizations accuse the KRG of mismanagement of people’s wealth.

Disagreements broke out between Baghdad and Arbil over Peshmerga forces presence in liberated areas in between Mosul and Arbil after liberating it from ISIS. The towns are within the disputed territories in the Iraqi constitution. Iraq’s PM media office denied reaching an agreement with KRG officials before the start of Mosul operation and asked the Peshmerga forces to withdraw from those areas. Earlier this month the Peshmerga forces liberated Bashiqa and several villages and stopped. The Iraqi forces advance toward the city of Mosul.

Iran

Rudaw: The leader of the Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan (PDKI) on Sunday congratulated Donald Trump for his election victory while calling for the power of the Iranian government to be curtailed. “The power of this regime (Iran) has to be curtailed in the region, and tough pressure must be placed on it,” said Mustafa Hijri, leader of the PDKI, which calls for the armed overthrow of Iran’s clerical regime.